A Fitness Guide for the Expecting Beginner

Many personal trainers and fitness experts recommend taking at least a full year to prepare your body for the considerable physical stresses of pregnancy and childbirth. A woman’s body goes through miraculous transformations almost daily as her baby forms and prepares to enter the world. These fitness gurus stress that a daily exercise program and sensible nutrition are essential in order to help make these transformations less traumatic. What if you haven’t had the luxury of a year’s worth of planning and training? Happily, your baby and your body will still benefit from a fitness routine whether you begin a week or a month into your pregnancy. It’s not important to be an expert, it’s just important to get started.

The first step in any, especially a prenatal beginning fitness routine is to move. It’s really that simple. Increasing your daily exercise by even ten minutes, can make a difference in the health of your baby and can reduce uncomfortable pregnancy symptoms. Walk to the store, forgo the elevator, take your partner on an after dinner stroll…you don’t have to train for a marathon, you just have to raise your heart rate. Once you have started the movement habit, you might consider other forms of exercise such as swimming, cycling or low-impact aerobics. Many community centers or gyms offer special prenatal programs that are tailored to your body’s needs. These classes have the added benefit of meeting other women and couples who are expecting and so can help to widen your social circle while reducing pregnancy discomforts. Whatever you choose, be sure your doctor knows you are beginning an exercise routine and has given you clearance to do so.

Stretching is incredibly important for pregnant women. During pregnancy, your body produces powerful hormones that loosen tendons and joints in preparation for labor. Stretching can help ease your body into and out of these considerable physical alterations. Prenatal yoga is helpful in this regard. It enables you to take the time to experience your body through all the stages of your pregnancy and to become more aware of the subtle signals your body sends. This combined with the breathing techniques essential to yoga practice will help you through your labor and in the tumultuous days to follow. There are copious amounts of yoga tapes and classes available to women. A quick internet search will show you what resources are available in your community – take advantage of them.

Many people feel that fitness is eighty percent diet and ten percent exercise. Whether this is true or not, the relationship between the two is certainly important. It’s not enough to exercise daily if you are still drowning your pregnancy anxieties in cheeseburgers and great tubs of ice cream. For your baby’s sake and your own health, you need to clean up your diet. The first thing to do is to stop eating processed foods. Commercially prepared junk foods are designed to taste good and thereby create addictions. When you have a craving for a sauce laden fast food burger, ask yourself if you would feed this to your newborn. Your baby deserves better and so do you. Instead of giving in to these urges, exercise will power and choose instead to nourish your amazing body with healthy food. Talk to your doctor about prenatal nutrition or consult a dietician for more information.

If you haven’t had the desire to pursue fitness before, you may find your pregnancy gives you the impetus you’ve been lacking. It’s never to late to start making healthy choices and starting a fitness program now will ensure you have the energy you need to help you as you and your baby grow together.